The relatively obscure Republican presidential candidate and lawyer hailing from Texas, who has initiated legal actions in numerous states with the aim of disqualifying former President Trump from the election based on the insurrection section of the 14th Amendment, has been arrested.
John Anthony Castro was recently indicted on 33 charges of assisting in the creation of fraudulent tax returns, as reported by The Hill. The prosecutors allege that he operated a “virtual tax preparation” enterprise that supplied clients with tax refunds exceeding their legitimate entitlement, so deceiving the government.
According to court records, federal prosecutors claimed that Castro would make a commitment to provide taxpayers with a much larger refund than what they could obtain from other tax accountants. Additionally, Castro frequently proposed sharing the extra refund amount with the taxpayers. To obtain these increased reimbursements, Castro fabricated unsubstantiated deductions, which were subsequently filed sans the taxpayer’s awareness.
The Hill included the following information:
Castro was busted by an undercover police officer, prosecutors outlined, who posed as a customer for his tax services. While a reputable tax preparer promised the undercover agent a $373 tax return, Castro instead claimed he could get $6,007, and offered to split the difference in extra cash.
The tax forms Castro then filed on behalf of the undercover officer contained nearly $30,000 in fraudulently claimed deductions, prosecutors said.
“On the same day his ballot challenge in New Hampshire was dismissed, he faced indictment. His efforts have similarly been rejected in Florida and, most recently, in Nevada on Tuesday. While several 14th Amendment lawsuits are still awaiting resolution, none have made substantial progress,” Conservative Brief reported.
BREAKING: The man who has been filing lawsuits in every state to get Donald Trump removed from the 2024 election ballot has been arrested & charged with filing 17 sets of false tax documents to the IRS. In total, John Anthony Castro has been charged with 33 counts of aiding the… pic.twitter.com/mQWi4MI2ii
— Antonio Sabato Jr (@AntonioSabatoJr) January 10, 2024
On the same day his ballot challenge in New Hampshire was dismissed, Castro faced indictment. His efforts have similarly been rejected in Florida and, most recently, in Nevada on Tuesday. While several 14th Amendment lawsuits are still awaiting resolution, none have made substantial progress.
Nonetheless, there have been successful challenges to Trump’s eligibility based on identical arguments. In both Colorado and Maine, efforts to remove Trump from their respective state ballots have been effective, with the matter currently pending Supreme Court action. Just last week, the Supreme Court announced its intention to review the merits of the Colorado case.
https://x.com/liberty_clarion/status/1749637160037392862?s=20
Castro asserted to The Hill that the allegations are clearly driven by political motives, “no question about it.” He further stated that he resolved the tax return issue with the IRS years before in 2021, contending that certain clients just lacked comprehension of tax legislation. He stated that his company reimbursed approximately $700,000 that year to settle discrepancies.
“I don’t care if they offered me one-day probation and a slap on the wrist in exchange for a guilty plea,” he exclaimed. “This is going to trial. I am going to convince all 12 jurors that I am 100 percent innocent and that this is political retaliation.”
“Last week, the U.S. Supreme Court decided to take an emergency appeal from attorneys for Trump after the Colorado Supreme Court banned him from that state’s 2024 ballot last month,” the outlet added.
The nation’s highest court said that all briefs filed in the case are due by Jan. 31 and that the justices would hear oral arguments on Feb. 8, Fox News reported.
“The petition for a writ of certiorari is granted. The case is set for oral argument on Thursday, February 8, 2024,” the decision said. “Petitioner’s brief on the merits, and any amicus curiae briefs in support or support of neither party, are to be filed on or before Thursday, January 18, 2024.”
At the same time, the high court issued a stay of Colorado’s order, instructing that state’s secretary of state to place Trump’s name back on the ballot pending the final decision in the case.
The Colorado court barred Trump under the 14th Amendment’s provision banning “officers” of the United States who engaged in “insurrection” from running for elected office. Supreme Court justices will likely consider the meaning of the phrase “engaged in insurrection” to make their decisions, Fox News reported.
In another victory for Trump, a judge in Cobb County has decided that the divorce proceeding of Fulton County Special Prosecutor Nathan Wade, who was appointed to lead the case regarding former President Donald Trump, needs to be made public. In addition, he ordered a halt to the deposition of Fulton County DA Fani Willis.
Superior Court Judge Henry Thomas determined that the divorce should be unsealed due to the absence of a prior hearing before the case became sealed, which constitutes a procedural violation.
Regarding Willis, the judge stated that due to the absence of underage offspring in the divorce proceedings of Nathan and Joycelyn Wade, and considering it as a mere “math problem,” it would be illogical to hear from Willis before Mr. Wade had been examined under oath regarding his financial situation and his association with Willis.